


Once Upon a December

by hllfire



Category: X-Men (Alternate Timeline Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - No Powers, Amnesia, Anastasia AU, Angst, Fluff, Inspired by Anastasia (1997 & Broadway), M/M, Royalty, slightly fantasy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-18
Updated: 2020-08-08
Packaged: 2021-03-04 22:41:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,380
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25364038
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hllfire/pseuds/hllfire
Summary: Charles lost his memory when he was 12 years old, only having his name and nothing else from his old life, except for the necklace that was found on him when he was a child and the vague memory of someone who waited for him in Paris. Once he finally left the orphanage he grew up in, Charles found himself in the company of Erik Lehnsherr and Raven Darkhölme, who told him they could help him get to Paris by lying that he could be the missing prince. As they travel, Charles finds out more and more about himself and the past he had forgotten.
Relationships: Erik Lehnsherr/Charles Xavier, Irene Adler (X-Men)/Raven | Mystique
Comments: 44
Kudos: 29





	1. PART 1

**Author's Note:**

> So, I finally got around to posting this AU here! I was wating to have more parts written to actually post it and it's not completed but I intend on completing it now so I'll be slowly posting the already existing parts here on Ao3! This au was written first on my Tumblr a while ago and it's not a continuous thing, it's not the complete story, it's composed of parts that are inspired by moments of the movie (and the musical as well because I love it a lot, but mostly the movie), and I really hope you guys enjoy it.
> 
> (Also, I was suddenly hit by the realization that I write a _lot_ of Prince!Charles here and I have no idea why I like it so much but OH WELL, IT'S A THING I GUESS).
> 
> Posted originally on [tumblr](https://hellfre.tumblr.com/post/616321785407946752/okay-i-havent-seen-anastasia-in-forever-i-only)

When Kurt Marko showed up in the palace weeks before, cursing the Xavier family and telling that Brian Xavier and all of his family would die in fifteen days, everyone laughed at the man. Now, as everyone who lived in the palace ran while the fire and the loud screams spread, no one was laughing.

Charles had been there that night, hand held tight with Jean's as both of them looked worriedly at Kurt, as both of them were afraid of his words. Now, running through the palace to leave, the siblings still held each other's hands tightly, running together with the other people who tried to flee the chaos.

"Wait! Jean, your music box!" Charles screamed, as he felt the necklace Jean had given him hitting his skin while running.

Jean turned to him with her eyes curious, urgency shining in them as Charles turned back and ran to get back to their rooms. He heard Jean screaming his name in the middle of the desperate voices, but he ignored it. He would be quick, he just needed to take the music box and go back to leave. Part of him knew he was leaving everything behind, he was a smart kid, he knew what would happen to his parents, as much as it hurt. They were caught first, and it was what led the rest of the people from the palace to flee, and since he was going to leave everything, he wanted something to remember; for him and Jean to remember.

Their mother had given them the music box and the necklace in the same night that Kurt had came into the palace, a small gift that made both of them smile and listen to the soft melody everyday together before going to sleep. Charles kept the necklace, Jean kept the music box, two parts of a whole, much like the siblings. Charles didn't want to leave part of it behind, to keep the necklace without the music box. Much like him and Jean, the two should stay together like their mother had said the night she had given them those gifts.

He reached Jean's room, looking around for a moment and spotting the music box on the side of her bed and taking it carefully, his hands holding it tightly against his chest as he prepared himself to run back. When the door opened, Charles thought he would be captured as well, but he calmed down a bit once he saw Jean getting in, eyes filled with tears and clearly terrified to still be inside of the palace. She stretched her hand towards him, he quickly took it. 

"We need to go!" she warned.

A loud noise of noise coming from the corridor made them stop, Charles' hand dropping the music box as he felt his breathing stop. Voices, men's voices, screaming to get the siblings, that they had ran there. Suddenly, Charles felt like he couldn't move anymore, fear taking over him as well as Jean.

"What are you doing here?" another voice came from somewhere in the room, and Charles' eyes turned to look at whoever was talking, seeing another boy there.

Charles had seen him around the palace, he had worked for his family, although Charles didn't know his name. His grey eyes were urgent as he looked at the two siblings, running towards them and pulling Charles by the arm, forcing him to move when he thought he wasn't able anymore.

"Through here, come on!"

Charles followed, mind slowly realizing that maybe there was some hope after all, as the noises from the corridor were becoming closer. There was an open door in a wall that the boy had entered through, leading to a darkened and tight corridor, and the boy quickly pushed the siblings inside. Charles suddenly remembered he dropped the box, eyes widening as he turned back to the room.

"The music box!" he yelled, but he couldn't go back, the boy shoving him inside the dark corridor again and Jean pulling him by the hand.

"Go!" the boy warned, giving Charles a last look before closing the door behind him.

As Charles and Jean ran, he heard someone fall to the ground after being hit with something, and Charles' heart clenched as he realized it was probably the boy that had just saved them. But they didn't stop running, Jean pulling Charles behind her and keeping the grip on his hand tight so he wouldn't run again, and soon they were outside the palace, running through snow and fleeing to the train station where they would be able to go to Paris, where they would be safe.

They ran through the frozen river, both of them breathing heavily with the exhaustion, when a noise of someone dropping behind them was heard and Charles let out a sound of complaint as both of his legs were held, making him fall face first into the ice and snow. Jean screamed, and once Charles looked behind him he could see why. Kurt Marko was there, holding him down and trying to grab him, a crazed look inside his eyes as he smiled manically.

"Let me go!" Charles screamed, kicking to try and get away from Kurt's hold, which only made the man laugh.

"You'll never escape from me, boy." he said, ignoring Charles' kicks as he kept trying to pull him close, Jean holding him by the armpits to pull him away from Kurt.

Charles almost believed, almost told Jean to run and leave him behind, when a cracking sound was heard and Kurt stilled all of the sudden before his body sank as the ice broke under him. Charles managed to get away, getting up completely out of breath and grabbing Jean's hand again so they could go back to running, hearing Kurt's screams behind him until they stopped suddenly. He didn't look behind, he didn't want to see another death, so he ran, hand holding Jean's more tightly as he felt like he could start crying at any second. 

When they finally reached the train station, it was chaos all over again. They shoved people away, some of them ushering for them to go quickly once they recognized the prince and princess running to get to the train. When Charles heard the train leaving, his panic only grew, but he didn't stop running. The people at the back of the train saw them, screaming for them to run faster, and they did. Charles shoved Jean into the people's waiting hands, seeing her being dragged onto it where she would be safe, his legs starting to hurt and his eyesight blurred with tears as he kept following the train. Jean screamed for him again, tears filling her eyes as well as she tried to reach for her brother. Charles managed to hold her hand one last time, see her desperate look as she told him to not stop running, until it was too late and the train was moving too fast. Charles' hand slipped from her and Jean screamed his name at the top of her lungs once more before Charles fell to the ground.

The last thing he felt was his head hitting something hard before it all turned into darkness.


	2. PART 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Charles finds himself at the old palace, where everything is strangely familiar, looking for one Erik Lehnsherr in the hopes to get to Paris and find out who he was before he lost his memories.
> 
> Based on the "Once Upon a December" song/scene.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I almost thought I lost the file for this chapter because it was buried in my google drive because I wrote this (and the other chapters as well) MONTHS ago. Thankfully I found it and managed to make some changes to it since I wrote it before I actually wrote the part 1 of this AU (it was a mess at first, I didn't write it chronologically when I first started posting it on tumblr lmao).
> 
> There's also the possibility of the next chapter being a completely new one that wasn't posted on tumblr beforehand! Hopefully! It'll depend on my writing capabilities agajshsjs
> 
> Hope you guys enjoy this one ❤️

Charles looked around the outside of old abandoned palace for some way he could enter, nervous about doing so but determined to get to Erik, whoever Erik might be. All that Charles knew from the man who carried that name was that he could find a way to get Charles to Paris, to the place where he was sure he could find what he lost, find his family and maybe even his memories. He just needed the _goddamned_ exit visa.

He took a deep breath, eyes once again scanning for somewhere he could enter the old palace, determined to get what he wanted. He had left behind a job that could grant him some kind of a normal life, where he could stay his days as Charles; orphan and _no-last-name_ Charles, with no idea who he was before ending at the orphanage he lived his life up until that moment. He had made his decision once he chose to turn right instead of turning left to live that normal life, he had chosen trying to find who he was and the people who surely once loved him, and he couldn't stop now. There was that small feeling at the back of his mind that told him he had made a bad choice, but he chose to ignore it. Better to ignore it at this point, too late to go back.

After a few moments, he saw an open passage blocked with wooden planks, walking there and watching the inside of the palace for a second before grabbing onto the wood and pulling. Charles wasn't strong, at least not strong enough to have broken the barrier if the wood wasn't old, and a single pull was enough to make Charles stumble backwards until he fell on his backside, wood in his hands as he looked at the now open passage. He took a deep breath, throwing the wood away and getting up, no hesitation when he finally entered, looking around for a moment before starting to walk through the empty halls.

"Hello?" he called out, voice echoing through the empty corridors in a ghostly manner. "Is anyone there?"

His only answer was the echo of his own voice. Charles sighed loudly, deciding that being inside the palace was better than outside in the snow, where he would have nowhere to sleep and it was colder, walking further into the halls and looking around curiously.

Every corner that he turned seemed to force his mind to remember something that he couldn't. Every piece of furniture and every painting on the wall looking familiar in a way that Charles couldn't understand. He only stopped walking once he reached what he supposed used to be the ballroom, looking into the empty space with curious eyes as his mind once again felt like it could split open at any given moment. 

He climbed down the first set of stairs that took him to the middle ground, watching a giant painting hanging on the wall, mind aching as he looked at the faces of the people in the painting. His eyes focused only on the small child there, standing between his parents and a little girl who looked younger than him, eyes blue as Charles' were and with a smile of a happy child. It was strange, looking into that painting, feeling that familiar feeling again, the palace walls around him feeling like a memory, a dream he once had.

He turned around, looking once again at the empty ballroom, and for a moment Charles was able to see what it looked like when it was used, before being abandoned. He could see the ground that now was filled with dust and dirt shine like a mirror, amber and gold, reflecting the light from the chandeliers above his head. He saw the windows clean and unbroken, saw the chandeliers shining beautifully on the ceiling, its crystals gleaming like a thousand shining stars; he saw guests, people dressed in suits and gowns, dancing around the shining floor to the rhythm of the music that came from all around them, a song that Charles almost could hear himself at that moment, a dull memory in the back of his mind that — as much as he tried — just wouldn't come forth, didn't allow itself to be remembered. Charles looked at his own feet, having walked forward without noticing, standing at the edge of the set of stairs right in front of the painting, and looked out into the ballroom again.

 _It's like a dream,_ he thought to himself, _like I've been here before in my dreams._

He got down the stairs slowly, reaching the ground floor and walking to the middle of the ballroom, looking around himself once again, turning and turning in his place as he could almost hear the music again, hear the people, feel the warmth of the place from long ago, and then he stopped, looking over at the stairs from where he came from, almost being able to see the couple from the painting standing there, looking at him with big and proud smiles on their lips, the little girl from the painting standing next to them with an even bigger smile.

He lost his breath for a moment, head aching with the _déjà vu_ as he still looked at the empty stairs. _I was here before,_ he thought, breathing now irregular as his head hurt with everything going on.

 _"Hey!"_ a voice came from the other side of the ballroom, startling Charles and making him turn around with his heart beating on his mouth. "What are you doing here?"

Something in the man's voice made Charles afraid, his first instinct being to run away, and so he did, turning back towards the stairs he came from and starting to run. He heard the man scream for him to wait, but everything still seemed too confusing inside his head for him to listen to the man, climbing the stairs quickly and only being able to put two and two together when he was already on top of it. _I came here looking for an Erik,_ he thought to himself, _this must be him._

Charles stopped as the man asked him once again to wait and stop, slowly turning around to face him and finally noticing the blonde woman that was running to catch up with them, as if she had only now decided to run as well.

"How did you get in-" 

The man stopped himself suddenly, eyes widening as he looked at Charles and at something behind him multiple times, making Charles turn and see the painting behind him again, a frown taking over his expression. The man suddenly smiled as if he had found the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, his friend — at least it was what Charles supposed the blonde woman was — finally catching up and placing a hand on Erik's shoulder, hand squeezing that shoulder as if she wasn't happy with all that running. The man winced, but didn't stop smiling.

"Hi, excuse me." the woman said breathlessly before the man stopped her from talking any further, looking at her with a beaming expression that made her raise her eyebrows at him. "Are you okay? You're smiling."

"Raven, are you seeing what I'm seeing?"

The man proceeded to turn the woman's — Raven's — face towards Charles again, a few moments later making her eyes go wide as well. Charles had no idea of what was happening.

"Are you Erik?" Charles finally asked, voice echoing on the empty room, trying to ignore that his head still hurt.

The man looked at him again, a confident look inside his eyes as he smiled once more, all teeth. "Maybe. Depends on who's looking for him."


	3. PART 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Based on the songs "Stay, I Pray You" from the 2016 Broadway Anastasia musical and "In The Dark Of The Night" from 1997's Anastasia, aa well as other scenes from the movie.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome to another part of this AU! This is a newly written part like I said it would be on the last chapter and I hope you guys like it! I had a lot of fun writing for this AU again after a while of not doing it.
> 
> Enjoy ❤️

As Charles was about to step into the train he stopped and looked behind himself to the land he called his home. He had never left the country, and even if ever since he was a child he dreamed of leaving, of going to Paris to try to find his family, there was a small melancholic feeling in his chest as he felt that he would never be back to that place.

"What are you waiting?" Erik called from the train, looking down at Charles with a raised eyebrow.

"Won't you miss it?" Charles asked, voice dreamy as he still looked at the horizon. He could see the old palace in the distance.

"Miss what?"

"This place."

"I'll be happy to leave. There's nothing for me left here." Erik's tone made Charles look at him. It was cold and bitter, but Erik's eyes now looked at the horizon as well, a spark of something like nostalgia inside his clear irises. "And for all you told me, there's nothing for you here as well. Right?"

"Right… Still, this place is all I know. It raised me." Erik nodded at that, some kind of understanding in his face. Charles could see that Erik thought the same.

"Guess it's time to say goodbye."

Charles looked again at the horizon, one last glance at the palace as his chest hurt a bit with the idea of leaving. But he had to. His past and future, for all he knew, was in Paris, waiting for him.

"Now, up the train you go." Erik said, bringing Charles' attention back to him with the commanding tone.

"Am I the prince or are you? Because you sure are bossy."

 _"Ha ha,_ very funny. Get up."

***

In a place in the depths of the Earth, somewhere between Earth and Hell, a man woke up of his slumber as he felt something stirring within him, like the feeling of a task left undone that kept you awake at night and wouldn't let you sleep. In Kurt Marko's case, it wouldn't let him die.

The vessel that contained his power, that he sold his very soul to obtain, glowed a sickly green and started to stirr, bringing Marko's attention to it. He never understood why death didn't come to him after drowning in the frozen river, why he descended into the dark depths and arrived on that Limbo. He thought that maybe it was because of his doings, that the curse he casted upon the Xavier's turned him into a restless soul, but now he knew.

The vessel let smoke out quietly into the peaceful Limbo, forming a circle with it, and soon faces started to appear in the smoke. The boy, now man, that appeared before him made Kurt Marko growl deep on his throat, blue eyes shining through the image, bright and _alive._

 _He escaped,_ Marko thought, taking the vessel in his hands and breaking the image of Charles Xavier, the Crown Prince. Not for long.

In that nowhere place, shadows moved and took form, glowing green under Marko's power as he whispered orders to them.

***

Charles didn't regret when he managed to get a punch right on Erik's face as the other man shook him violently to wake him up. He had learned to react quickly when he felt he was in danger, and considering that he was in a train on his way to Paris with two people he had met only a day ago, it was a situation where Charles had to be alert about everything.

Erik, however, didn't seem much too happy with Charles' quick reaction on being awakened.

"We need to go. Come on, _your highness."_ he mocked after glaring at Charles for the punch, massaging his nose for a moment.

"Where are we going?"

"Just come."

Charles hesitated but went anyway. It wasn't like he had much choice. He put his coat and hat on, taking his only bag with him and following Raven and Erik to the front of the train, frowning the entire time. When they reached the baggage car of the train, Charles sighed, realizing exactly what he had gotten himself into when he decided to trust those two.

But then again, they were his only way of getting to Paris, so it wasn't like he could complain much.

"This will do nicely." Erik tried a confident smile as Raven looked at him with a disapproving look, running her hands through her arms thanks to the cold.

"The baggage car?" Charles inquired, raising his eyebrows as he put his bag down. "Everything alright with our papers?"

"Of course, your highness. It just upsets me that you have to be around all those commoners." Erik mocked. Behind him, Raven rolled her eyes.

Charles was about to say something back when he felt the train shake abruptly as a loud metallic noise came from the door they just walked in from, making Charles lose his balance for a moment. Erik and Raven weren't much better.

"What the hell?" Raven yelled, quickly pushing past between the two man to look at the end of the car as both Erik and Charles got back on their feet. Difficult task considering the train seemed to be going faster than it should.

"What was that?" Erik asked as he walked towards Raven again, eyes widening as he saw the baggage car had disconnected from the rest of the train.

"I don't know." Raven's voice was out of breath. "But there goes the rest of the train."

Charles only stood where he was, watching the two friends with a bad feeling on his stomach as everything played out. Through the entire time, there was a familiar dread within him, as if something in that situation was tied to something about his past. It wasn't a good feeling, it wasn't like the feeling he had at the palace the other day, it was a familiarity that made him want to puke. Either that or the train going too fast was making him nauseous. He was betting on both.

In the meantime, Raven ran past him again, going to the other end of their car that was still connected to the train's engine, letting out a soft curse as she looked through the window on the door.

"Erik, you're not gonna like this!" Raven sang those words nervously making Erik groan and go after her.

"What now?"

"Do you like _flambeau_ engine?"

"Oh my- Stay here."

Erik didn't let Raven complain, opening the door and jumping out to go to the engine. At this point, Charles finally moved to watch the other man go, something in his mind terrified that he wouldn't come back. As much as they had taken to fighting each other ever since they met, bickering endlessly, Charles still liked Erik enough to not want him to die from falling from the top of a moving train.

"Is he going to be okay?" Charles turned his face to Raven, who grimaced for a moment and looked to the place where Erik was before he disappeared further into the train.

"Ah, you know. He's a tough guy… I'm sure he's fine." 

At that moment, both of them heard something explode, immediately looking to the place Erik should be if he was coming back and seeing nothing. A bad feeling filled Charles' body for a moment, until Erik jumped down from the top of the train and walked inside their car once more, waking straight to the door to the side of the car, apparently in one piece.

"No one's driving the train, we'll have to jump."

_"Jump?!"_

When Erik managed to open the door, Charles peeked outside at the ground far down below as the train crossed a bridge. Him and Erik stared at each other.

"Well, after you, good sir." Charles mocked, making Erik groan once more.

"Fine. Let's just uncouple the car."

Once again, that familiar dread hit Charles as he saw Erik getting up to do what he said, as if something was happening right now. Erik's unsatisfied noise only made the feeling worse.

"It melted together! How did it- Give me something to hit this with!"

As Raven gave Erik a hammer, Charles started to look around the baggage car in search for something to help, trying to stop that dread from getting to him, finding a box of explosives. His eyes shone brighter with it, knowing that that should be enough to uncouple the train. He took one of the dynamites stored there, lighting it with a matchbox that he had with him and ran towards the door to get to Erik as the man started screaming again.

"This does nothing! Give me something be-" he stopped himself once Charles pushed the lit dynamite into his hand, staring at it for a moment before looking up at Charles with a flashy grin. "Smart man."

"Stop talking and put the dynamite there you idiot!" Charles screamed back, making Erik obey him, suddenly remembering he was still holding the lit dynamite.

He placed the explosive somewhere where it was sure to stay in its place, jumping back into the car and dragging Charles to the other end by the collar of his coat, away from the explosion as Raven followed them.

"What did they teach you on that orphanage anyway?" Erik asked when the three of them were safe

"How to not be stupid."

"Alright, I called for that one."

They almost fell to the ground when it exploded, the dynamite doing its job of separating the engine from their car, and doing an extra job of blowing up almost the entire back of it. Raven was the first one to go to the breaks, pulling desperately to try and make them stop.

"Break's not working!" she sang nervously again.

"I can't win, can I?" Erik mumbled, running his hand through his face for a moment. "No, it's okay. There's a lot of rails still for us to go so we'll just keep going until it stops!"

Charles ignored the dread in his heart once more, knowing that Erik was right about that and that there was nothing else to worry about now. Unfortunately, he was proven wrong when the noise of an explosion — louder than the dynamite they had just exploded — reached his ears. He looked outside the train, through the hole left by the dynamite, and saw the rock bridge that stood in the middle of a tall cliff just a few miles ahead of them break and fall. For a moment, Charles was sure he saw something, a green glow fading in the distance, the dreadful feeling fading with it. He made sure to ignore it, certain than it was just his panic talking.

"You were saying?" he turned to Erik then, seeing the man take a deep breath as he couldn't believe his luck — or the lack of it.

"Back to square one." Erik finally said, looking around himself for something.

"Which is?"

"We jump."

"Erik, we're still too fast!" it was Raven's time to intervene, both her and Charles staring at the man as he grabbed a hook.

"I'm working on that."

Charles moved then, knowing that he couldn't just stand there and watch as Erik did all the work to keep them alive, and helped Erik to drag the heavy chains attached to the hook to the far end of the car, the one not completely destroyed. When they reached the door, Charles felt his heart on his throat as Erik hang himself over the edge to tie one of the ends of the hook to the train, barely hanging on to it, almost falling. That small panic in Charles' heart was what made him hear something go loose under the train, the noise quickly making him grab Erik's shirt and pull him up just as the metal piece that had detached itself from the train passed under Erik and hit a nearby tree with so much force that made it break and fall on the rails. Erik looked at the fallen tree that was becoming distant now as they went with wide eyes as one of his hands grabbed Charles' arm to keep himself up.

"That could've been you." Charles said in a quiet voice, panic not fully subsiding just yet.

"If we survive this," Erik caught his attention back, eyes meeting as they were close to each other now. "remind me to thank you."

They let go of each other and Erik moved inside again to grab the other end of the hook, throwing it at the rails with a hopeful expression in his face. When the hook stuck itself in the wood of the rails, Erik smiled widely in victory, only to see the wood was not strong enough to stop the train without breaking. The car turned, going off the rails but still moving — if only a little less fast now —, making the three of them fall to the ground for a moment again at the abrupt movement. The car didn't stop, but Erik's plan had somewhat worked as they weren't as fast as before. It was safer to jump now, Charles guessed.

"Time to jump!" Raven screamed, taking her bags and looking towards the two men so they would follow her. The broken bridge was approaching faster.

One by one they jumped in the snow, Charles hitting a lump of it with a soft grunt from the impact, and getting his head up quickly to watch as the train now fell to its doom at the bottom of the cliff. They all stayed silent for a moment, just realizing what could have happened to them, until Charles got up first and started to take the snow off of his clothes.

"Well," he said, Raven and Erik looking at him curiously. "I guess we walk. And you owe me a _thank you."_


	4. PART 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Based on part of the boat scene on the 1997's movie and on the song Meant to Be from the 2016's musical.

The boat swayed slightly as Charles watched Erik getting closer to him with a small box in hands, grey eyes as stern as ever, even if they now had some new glimmer to them that made Charles' cheeks feel hot. He didn't know exactly when it started, when he became fond of the other man in such way, but now it was too late to go back.

"Bought this for you. You'll need these." the smile in Erik's lips was small, but sincere, making Charles smile back even if his brow was furrowed, taking the box — the gift — from Erik's hands to look at the content.

He opened the box, taking a few moments to realize what was inside of it and smiling once again as he touched the fabric of the clothes.

"Better than the raggedy clothes you've been wearing ever since we left England." Charles glared at Erik for a moment, seeing the man shrug amusedly and cross his arms over his chest, suddenly looking nervous. "Do you like them?"

Charles took a piece of the clothing from the box, a blue waistcoat that looked a lot like Erik's burgundy one. The fabric felt nice against Charles' fingers and he couldn't deny he liked the color as well — royal blue, the color of the family Charles hoped to be a part of —, but he couldn't help himself on wanting to bother Erik even if just a little, always amused at the other's frustrated face whenever he said or did something Erik  _ really _ wasn't expecting.

"It's not that bad." Charles said, seeing immediate results in the other man's eyes.

_ "Not that bad?" _

"Yeah, could be worse."

He tried his best to hide the playful smile and stop it from appearing on his lips, but it was almost impossible. As soon as Erik noticed that, his look of surprise vanished and he rolled his eyes, even if a minimal smile appeared on his lips for a quick moment. 

"Go get dressed, for goodness sake." 

Erik left with a wave of a hand, making Charles smile wider and look at the clothes again before moving gingerly over to his cabin to change his old clothes for these new ones.

It didn't take long for him to get changed, fixing his hair as best as he could, knowing he would have to cut it soon, a few strands being too stubborn to stay in place and constantly falling over Charles' eyes. He took a moment to look at himself in the mirror, eyes staring at the new person that stared back at him, the clothes bringing some kind of familiarity to Charles' mind as he observed them in his body. The white shirt under the waistcoat was a bit bigger than him, but he had made it work somehow, the blue waistcoat made his eyes shine even more, and something told him that this was how he should've been dressing all his life. 

The man staring back at him in the mirror seemed like a version of himself that should've been, a ghost of a person that never existed, and suddenly that little boy in the painting back in the old palace came back to his mind. Charles still didn't know, still couldn't be sure, but he felt like that little boy, the child prince, was staring back at him.

He shook his head after a few seconds, leaving his cabin quickly and walking up to the deck of the boat, seeing Erik and Raven sat at a small table with a chess board between them as Erik looked at Raven with some kind of annoyance because the girl couldn't decide which piece to move. That made Charles chuckle, knowing now that Raven didn't know how to play chess and only played to please Erik.

His chuckle caught Raven's attention, and soon her pale blue eyes shone like fireworks as she looked at Charles, getting up from the table and leaving a complaining Erik behind to walk in circles around Charles with all that grace that she seemed to always have, a big smile on her lips. Charles didn't move, letting her examine him even if he felt a little uncomfortable with the looks.

"My, oh my.  _ Now _ you're looking like royalty, your highness." she joked. Charles snorted at her as she stopped in front of him, eyes still bright. "You look like you're ready for a dance. In fact, you  _ should _ learn how to dance."

From the small table, Erik watched Charles with curious eyes, making him feel his cheeks burn slightly. Erik was so focused on Charles that he didn't notice Raven getting closer to him until the woman pulled him by the arm and started dragging him towards Charles. He went with a complaining grunt at being dragged like that. 

"Follow Erik's steps, he's a good dancer." she said as she pushed Erik one last time and stood to the side. "Go on.  _ Chop-chop. _ It's part of your lessons now."

Both of them looked nervous at the idea of dancing with each other, and Charles saw the exact moment something in those grey eyes shifted as he offered Charles his hand to take, apparently giving in to the idea. Charles gave Erik his hand, watching as the other man placed it on his shoulder and pulled Charles close by his waist, taking Charles' free hand and starting to move. Erik's hands were warm where he touched Charles' skin.

Charles had never danced before, and he was still nervous for staying this close to Erik, which made him step on the other man's feet multiple times. He blushed red at that as Erik only chuckled and shook his head. 

"I know it's very hard for you to follow orders but just let me guide you." Erik raised his eyebrows, voice softer than it normally was, and Charles swallowed his own spit before nodding.

When he allowed himself to relax and let Erik guide his movements, the dance started to make sense and soon they moved through the deck of the boat as if there was music around them, when the only sounds that conducted their steps were the waves breaking against the side of the boat and the loud wind that made a mess of both Charles' and Erik's hair.

A smile appeared in Charles' lips, suddenly happy with the dancing and the way Erik was being careful with him at that moment, and soon he saw his own smile reflected in Erik's lips. On the side, they failed to notice the look in Raven's eyes as they danced, worry filling her thoughts as she noticed the look in both man's eyes.

_ Romance, _ she thought, clenching her jaw as she realized that maybe she shouldn't have allowed them to dance. As much as she felt some kind of happiness for the way the two of them were getting along, this wasn't part of the plan, and it made her wonder if it wouldn't change the plan in any way. But then again, it was the first time she had seen Erik at ease like this.

After a few more moments, Charles chuckled with a too fast of a turn, feeling his head turning as well with the spins and the sway of the boat.

"I'm getting dizzy." he confessed.

Erik stopped dancing immediately, still holding Charles close as he chuckled while waiting for Charles get himself back together, both of them with dumb smiles on their faces. Charles looked up at Erik, smile fading away from both of them as the stare kept on going for longer than normal. Raven watched the scene in front of her unfold, unsure on how she wanted it to end. There was something in Erik's eyes that made Charles blush again, fairly sure that he saw Erik lower his gaze to his lips for a second there.

"Charles, I…"

"Yes?"

He felt his heart beating faster inside his chest as he noticed Erik getting closer slowly, brow furrowed as if he was as confused with what was happening as Charles.

Charles was sure he would be kissed in that moment, that he would feel Erik's lips on his, and the idea made him lose his breath, eyes closing as he waited for the kiss he was sure was coming. He waited, and waited again, until he heard a heavy sigh in front of him and opened his eyes again, watching Erik's face as he battled against something behind those grey eyes, a weak smile appearing on his lips but with no humor at all.

"You're doing great." he said simply, as weak as his smile, letting go of Charles and making him feel alone again without the proximity. 

As Erik left for his own cabin, Charles stood there, face flushed with embarrassment for waiting to be kissed and with the idea he was  _ so close _ to be kissed. Nearby him, Raven bit the inside of her lip, sighing and watching her friend go away and knowing Erik had moved away because of their plan. She looked at Charles again, watching the man swallow and pick on the skin of his own hand as he turned away and went to watch the waves over the side of the boat, secretly wishing Erik had forgotten about the plan for that small moment.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments and kuddos are always appreciated!
> 
> Find me on [tumblr](http://hellfre.tumblr.com) for more about my writing!


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